Nanda Gopaul, Emily Dodson among proposed members of procurement commission
-Goolsarran, Ram overlooked
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament is proposing the following five persons to compose the longawaited Public Procurement Commission (PPC): Emily Dodson, Carol Corbin, Sukrishnalall Pasha, Ivor B. English and Dr. Nanda K. Gopaul.
Eliminated from the shortlist of 12 were former auditor general Anand Goolsarran and chartered accountant and attorney Christopher Ram. Goolsarran and Ram have been longstanding public commentators on governance issues and were both seen to have the requisite credentials to be on the commission.
The five names would have been settled as a result of hard bargaining between APNU+AFC and the PPP/C in the PAC. There has to be bipartisan agreement on the names as the quintet require twothirds support of the National Assembly. The report is to be considered at Thursday’s sitting of the National Assembly, according to the Order Paper.
Dodson is an experienced attorney at law. Corbin had worked for some time with the Privatisation Unit. Pasha has served as the Chairman of the Small Business Council. Gopaul, a longstanding trade unionist served in the former PPP/C government as a Minister of Labour. English is a former General Manager of the Transport and Harbours Department.
The others who were on the shortlist of 12 were Balwant Persaud, Devan Khemraj, Robeson Benn, Cecil Jacques and E Lance Carberry.
Article 212X (1) of the Constitution states “the Public Procurement Commission shall consist of five members who shall have expertise and experience in procurement, legal, financial and administrative matters” and (2) “the President shall appoint the members of the Commission after such members have been nominated by the Public Accounts Committee and approved by not less than two-thirds of the elected members of the National Assembly.”
The Act also states that the purpose of the PPC will be to “monitor public procurement and the procedure therefor in order to ensure that the procurement of goods, services and execution of works are conducted in a fair, equitable, transparent competitive and cost effective manner according to law and such policy guidelines as may be determined by the National Assembly …The Commission shall be independent, impartial, and shall discharge its functions fairly.”
‘Functions’
Among the PPC’s key functions, according to the Procurement Act are to “Monitor and review the functioning of all procurement systems to ensure that they are in accordance with law and such policy guidelines as may be determined by the National Assembly; promote awareness of the rules, procedures and special requirements of the procurement process among suppliers, constructors and public bodies; safeguard the national interest in public procurement matters, having due regard to any international obligations; monitor the performance of procurement bodies with respect to adherence to regulations and efficiency in procuring goods and services and execution of works; approve of procedures for public procurement, disseminate rules and procedures for public procurement and recommend modifications thereto to the public procurement entities.”
It will also “monitor and review all legislation, policies and measures for compliance with the objects and matters under its purview and report the need for any legislation to the National Assembly; monitor and review the procurement procedures of the ministerial, regional, and national procurement entities as well as those of project execution units; investigate complaints from suppliers, contractors and public entities and propose remedial action; investigate cases of irregularity and mismanagement, and propose remedial action; initiate investigations to facilitate the effective functioning of public procurement systems.”
The PPC can also enlist the aid of experts to assist with specialist advice as needed and will also liaise with and refer matters to the police and the Auditor General; and do all other acts and things as may be necessary to facilitate the efficient discharge of the functions of the Commission.
The APNU+AFC government had promised the PPC within its first 100 days in office. In November of last year, the PAC commenced advertising for nominees.
For years, the PPP/C while in office had haggled with the PNCR, APNU and the AFC over candidates for the PPC and how many should be nominated by either side.
Both APNU and the AFC, while in opposition, had lobbied for the removal of Cabinet’s “noobjection” role in the procurement process. According to the Procurement Act, Cabinet shall have the right to review all procurements, the value of which exceeds $15 million. However, once the PPC is commissioned, Cabinet’s noobjection powers will be phased out so as to decentralize the procurement process.
Though the Act was implemented in 2003, Cabinet still holds full powers as it relates to its role in the procurement process owing to the fact that the PPC has not been constituted. Cabinet presently signals its noobjection to contracts and only then can they proceed.
This “no-objection” role had been strongly opposed by APNU and AFC when they were in opposition.